By Greg Hazley
The FDA on Monday released nine graphic warning labels for cigarette boxes and advertising in the U.S., which the agency said are the most significant changes in 25 years.
The Food and Drug Administration has set a September 2012 deadline for the warnings to be deployed on packs, cartons and ads after first proposing the changes in November. The mandate came from the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, passed by Congress and signed into law by president Obama in 2009.
Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius called the labels “frank, honest and powerful depictions of the health risks of smoking,” adding that the FDA believes they will help encourage smokers to quit and prevent kids from smoking.
The nine labels were culled from a group of 36, which were involved in an 18,000-person study and put up for comment from interest groups and health professionals.
Tobacco use costs the U.S. $200 billion a year in medical costs and lost productivity while claiming 443,000 deaths annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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